Double Battle/Anime
While had conducted "illegal" Double Battles since the third episode, the first official Double Battle occurred in Pokémon Double Trouble. In order to win the , Ash had to defeat Luana's and in a Double Battle. Though Ash's Pikachu and were initially unwilling to cooperate, they eventually overcame their differences in order to win the battle. A notable difference about this Double Battle compared to the ones introduced later is that winning the match requires only defeating one of the opposing Trainer's two Pokémon. After the release of , Double Battles were seen in the anime more often. The first took place in All in a Day's Wurmple. Forrester Franklin introduced the concept to Ash, and they had a battle that Ash won. As in the games, Ash's Gym against Tate and Liza was a Double Battle. Additionally, in order to qualify for the finals of the Ever Grande Conference, competitors must win three Double Battles in the preliminaries. Ash had a Double Battle against Dome Ace Tucker at the Battle Dome in Tactics Theatrics!!. He used his and against the Frontier Brain's and and was able to win the battle, earning the Tactics Symbol, his third Symbol overall. From The Bicker the Better onwards, Ash teamed up with other Trainers to conduct Tag Battles. A Double Battle can also be conducted under Contest Battle rules; more specifically, the battling stage of every Grand Festival uses the Double Battle style. Additionally, with the introduction of Double Performances in the , s have to use two Pokémon in both the Performance Stage and the Battle Stage of Pokémon Contests following the format. In Strategy Begins at Home!, challenged her mother, Johanna, to a Double Battle. Despite having developed a strategy which her and managed to pull off during battle, Dawn still had trouble dealing with Johanna's skills as a Top Coordinator and her well-trained and . As a result, she lost the battle. In Double-Time Battle Training!, Dawn faced off against Zoey in a Double Battle, using her and against her rival's and . During the battle, Dawn attempted to use a newly developed combination, but it failed and Zoey emerged victorious. In Battling the Bully!, there was a pretend Double Battle between and Glenn, both using borrowed Pokémon. Ash battled Shamus, 's original Trainer, in a Double Battle in Evolution by Fire!. During the battle, Tepig evolved, giving him enough power to earn victory for his new Trainer. battled in a Double Battle in Battling with Elegance and a Big Smile!. During the battle, Serena's evolved into , allowing her and to even the playing field. However, Aria had to cancel the battle because of an urgent phone call. Ash battled Olympia in a Double Battle in All Eyes on the Future! at the Anistar Gym. The battle ended in Ash's victory, earning him the . In Trials and Determinations!, Ash's grand trial battle against Olivia was a Double Battle. The battle eventually ended in Ash's victory, earning him a Rockium Z. battled in a Double Battle in Mission: Total Recall! at a motel. The battle ended in Faba's victory after he defeated both of Gladion's Pokémon and put him asleep with his 's . Ash battled in a Double Battle in Acting True to Form! at Pokémon School. However, the battle was called off after Ash's Pikachu discovered trying to steal Ash's Rowlet. Ash battled Ryuki in a Double Battle in Aiming for the Top Floor! at the Kantonian Gym, eventually emerging victorious.